How will an autistic child react to a new sibling?

I have a 12 year old stepson who has aspergers syndrome. He seems to play well with other children. My husband and I would like to have a child but he enjoys being the only child. How do most autistic children deal with having another sibling?

Expert

What the Expert Says:

Hello and thank you for writing to JustAsk!

I know that this is a tricky question because you don't want to "rock the boat" with your twelve year old, however you wish for an addition to your family. I would think that not all children with autism respond the same to a new sibling. Thus, you need to proceed slowly and take a few cues from how your step-son reacts to the introduction of other people and objects in his environment.

You may wish to have your step-son interact on a regular basis with babies, toddler and preschool children in small doses. (Perhaps children of friends). I would start slowly. A quiet place for an interaction of a short time span. Then increase the amount of time per interaction, as well as switching the kinds of interactions. You may wish to include a meal or play time. He may need to see you taking care of a young child outside of your home and then in your home. Maybe if he is gentle and can sit still long enough to hold a baby that is not a newborn with close adult supervision for a short while this may assist him in the tactile portion of having a new child enter the home. The key is to have your son acclimate to the sounds, smells and visual stimuli that a new baby, toddler and preschooler can bring to a home.

Also, I would not leave a baby unattended in the same area as your step-son. Tweens in general can be very clumsy as their bodies develop and also forgetful. Thus, supervision would be warranted.